Mum-of-four left cop disabled by dragging him along street with Range Rover as he tried to arrest her – but avoids jail

A MUM left a police officer disabled by dragging him with her Range Rover as he tried to arrest her. Candace De Silva was pulled over by Afghanistan war hero PC Simon Ward because he suspected she was using mobile phone behind the wheel. Candace De Silva dragged a police officer with her car Credit: Cavendish She left him disabled but avoided prison Credit: Cavendish When the 37-year-old tested more than three times the drink-drive limit, De Silva told the officer: “You are not f***ing searching me – I am going. You cannot stop me.” She then put her foot down and sped off as PC Ward desperately clung to the driver’s side window of her 4×4. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! The officer shouted “do not try and resist me. Stop the car” as he used his Parva spray to try to incapacitate De Silva. She eventually stopped in Liverpool city centre after PC Ward had been dragged for around six car lengths. He was left with permanent injuries to his knee and can no longer work on frontline duties. The officer also said the burden he believes he is placing on others was the equivalent of ”living a death sentence.” PC Ward added: “She thought she was above the law.” De Silva pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving but avoided jail. Most read in The Sun She was instead sentenced to 28 months in prison, suspended for two years, after the court was told two of her four children have neurodivergent conditions and suffer with special educational needs. JPs also heard De Silva – an accounts manager for the Royal College of Physicians – is the sole earner as her husband does not work. At a previous hearing, she was fined £457 after she pleaded guilty to drink driving and using her mobile phone at the wheel of a car. Judge Garrett Byrne told her: ”Your behaviour was absolutely appalling. This officer was someone who was acting on behalf of all of us to protect us and keep the roads safe from people such as yourself – people prepared to drink and drive. ”You could have killed him. But there is one matter that weighs in favour of suspending a prison sentence – that you have four children two of whom have special needs. ”Although you did not give them sufficient thought that day, I have to.” The court was told De Silva had been pulled over at around 4.15pm on September 14, 2024. Nardeen Nemat, prosecuting, said: “Whilst speaking to the defendant, PC Ward noted her eyes appeared glazed and her speech was slurred and she subsequently failed a breath test. “PC Ward requested a female officer to attend so that he could search the defendant but was told no female police officer was available to assist. “The defendant then told the officer, ‘See no-one else is coming. You are not f***ing searching me. I am going. You cannot stop me.’ “She put her key in the ignition of the car and turned the engine on causing the vehicle to move forward. ”PC Ward put hand into the vehicle in an attempt to remove the key to stop it and told the defendant on numerous occasions to stop the car. ”But the vehicle moved forward and the speed increased. PC Ward grabbed hold of the steering wheel to stop himself being dragged under the vehicle and his feet lifted off the road. “Inside the car was a female passenger and PC Ward noted that there was a female pedestrian with a pram on the pavement nearby. He feared for their safety.” The court heard De Silva repeatedly hit at PC Ward causing lacerations to his fingers and the palm of his hand. She was also seen urging a female passenger to assist with putting the car in gear. After the mum was hit with the spray, she moaned: “You pepper sprayed me. I cannot see. My eyes are burning.” She also wept: “I just want to go home to my children. I did not touch you. I did not do anything.” De Silva then injured another officer when she deliberately slumped to the floor while being led inside a police van – causing one of her handcuffs to scratch the cop’s forearm. In a victim impact statement, PC ward said he is now office-based and is reliant on a metal support brace and crutches to walk. He told the court he is in “constant pain” and said he was forced to move house due to his injury. The officer added: “After fighting for my country and its values being a police officer brought me pride. I thought I could make a positive impact on the community and victims of crime. It is now hard to accept that I am a victim of crime. “I nearly never came home and can honestly say that despite all the situations previously encountered, September 14 was the worst day of my life. “My hope of a future is not one anyone would want. I am just amazed this woman feels the apologies will undo the harm. That day she thought she was above the law.” In mitigation, De Silva’s defence counsel Charles Lander said the incident was a “moment of madness”. As well as a suspended sentence, she was ordered to complete 15 rehabilitation activity days and 140 hours of unpaid work. De Silva was also banned from driving for three years and will need to take an extended retest before she can have her licence returned.